A Daddy for Dillon (8 page)

“Do you need anything, Auntie? I’ll get paid next week. I can bring whatever you need back to you then.”

Smiling gently, Oneida shook her head. “Not a thing, honey. Just seeing your pretty face is enough. Now tell me about my nephew. What does he think about the ranch?”

It wasn’t so much as what Dillon thought about the ranch as it was what he thought about the man who ran it. But she wasn’t going to say anything about Laramie to her aunt. He wasn’t that important. She wasn’t going to let him be.

“He seems happy. The owner’s grandsons have lots of toys stored at the house and Dillon is allowed to play with them. And there’s a nice yard with a huge gym set. From the house he can see the horses and cows, and he keeps pestering me to take him to down to the ranch yard to see them. So I’m taking extra care to see that he doesn’t wander off down there on his own.”

“He’s a typical boy. Let him see and learn. You’ll know when and how to let him do things. You’re a good mother.”

Leyla shook her head with disbelief. “I don’t know why you always have such confidence in me. I made terrible mistakes with Dillon’s father.”

A smug look came over the woman’s wrinkled face. “Maybe that’s why I do have such faith in you. Because I know you’ve learned. You won’t make those kind of mistakes again.”

She’d learned all right, Leyla thought. But what had it done to her? Laramie had described her as unfeeling. Sassy implied she was wasting herself. That wasn’t the person she wanted to be. She wanted everyone to see that Heath hadn’t crushed the loving person deep inside her.

Leyla talked for a few more minutes with Oneida, then said her goodbyes. Outside, Sassy and Dillon were watching a pair of squirrels scamper up and down a nearby tree.

As Leyla approached the bench, she asked Sassy, “How in the world did you get him to sit like that?”

The other woman laughed. “It wasn’t my mothering skills, I can tell you that much. He’s enamored with the squirrels.”

Taking Dillon by the hand, Leyla urged her son away from the bench and the chattering squirrels. After all of them were safely buckled in the truck, Sassy backed onto the quiet street and turned in the direction that would lead them out of town.

“How’s your aunt?” Sassy asked as she maneuvered the truck through heavier traffic.

Leyla smiled. “Slowly improving. She’s able to dress herself now and walk with a walker.” The sight of the nursing home in her side mirror strengthened her resolve to make things better for her aunt. “Her doctor says she might be able to come home in a few months. Since her house has become practically unlivable I’m going to find us a more decent place to live.”

“You were living in that house a few days ago,” Sassy pointed out.

“That’s true. But Oneida is frail. She needs to be cool in summer and warm in winter, with hot water in the bathroom and kitchen.”

“Sounds like she’ll need help.”

“I’m the only help she has. So I’ve been planning to rent a house for the three of us. Oneida hates being in town, so that means I’ll have to find something on the res.”

“That’s taking on a big load,” Sassy said thoughtfully. “Wouldn’t you rather stay on the Chaparral and find a caretaker for your aunt?”

Even as Leyla shook her head, images of Laramie were dancing through her mind. Once her job on the ranch was over, she’d probably never see him again. It was a lonely thought.

“I don’t have that choice, Sassy. Once Reena returns, my job will be over. Besides, Oneida gave me a home when I desperately needed somewhere to live. I won’t push her aside. I love her.”

“Hmm. I’m sure Quint could find another job for you on the ranch, and they always have some sort of empty housing available for employees who need it. You could take Oneida out there to live with you. The general office always needs help. The regular bookkeeper has been with them for about four years, but the staff under her is always turning over. There aren’t many women who want to make the long, rough drive out to the ranch. It doesn’t take long for the trek to turn a car into a piece of junk. And many people don’t want to live out there in the wilds, either.”

Leyla countered. “You make the drive every day instead of living out there.”

“I live in town for a reason. And this old truck of mine makes the drive just fine,” Sassy joked.

A wan smile touched Leyla’s lips. “Well, I’ll be leaving. The ranch isn’t for me, either.”

Sassy frowned. “You sure as heck fooled me. I thought you fit right in.”

To fit in and be a part of a family was something Leyla had always wanted. And she was already growing to love the Chaparral. But her job was temporary and from what Laramie had told her, he wasn’t looking for a woman to be a permanent part of his life. To believe she could make her home there would only be wishful thinking.

* * *

Inside the vet’s office on the Chaparral, Russ poured two mugs full of coffee and handed one to Laramie before he took a seat behind his desk. With both hands gripping the mug, Laramie sank wearily into a nearby armchair.

“Your mare came out of the surgery just fine,” Russ told him. “But that was a damned nasty cut on her ankle. Laurel is finishing the bandage now. Once she wakes up well enough to walk, you can take her back to her stall. Just be sure to tell the boys to keep the space as clean as possible. We’ll change her bandage in a few days, but not before.”

“I would take somebody’s head off for this,” Laramie muttered angrily. “If I just knew who.”

He and practically every ranch hand on the place had covered miles of rough terrain before they’d finally spotted the pregnant mare and yearling colt in a washed-out draw several miles away from the ranch yard. The mare had suffered a deep ankle cut that had required surgery to repair.

“Just be glad you found them,” the vet said in an effort to smooth Laramie’s feathers. “And the mare will survive. That’s something to be thankful for.”

“I am thankful,” Laramie grumbled. “But you and I both know that her ankle will be scarred for the rest of her life.”

“Well, it’s not like she was up for sale. Having a scarred ankle won’t keep her from producing nice foals.”

“Yes, but it dropped her worth several thousands of dollars,” he shot back at Russ. “And the idiot who let them out of the barn ought to pay. If nothing else, they should pay for being so ignorant!”

Russ sipped his coffee, then turned a pointed look on Laramie. “Who said it was ignorance that caused the horses to get loose?”

Laramie narrowed his eyes as he contemplated the vet’s question. “You think this whole thing is more than a dumb mistake by a ranch hand who doesn’t want to own up to it?”

Russ nodded. “Look, ever since I discovered that Josie’s milk had been tainted, I have thought evil is lurking among us.”

Josie was one of twin calves born at the end of the winter. Laurel had been raising her on a bottle, and during that time the calf had become deathly ill. It was later learned that the goat’s milk had been tainted with some sort of toxin. So far no one knew how it had gotten in the milk. But clearly Russ hadn’t forgotten the incident.

“That’s a bold statement,” Laramie said.

“I meant for it to be.”

“Thank God none of the cattle or horses have gotten sick since Josie.”

“That’s true. But look at the machinery that’s broken down. The tractor. The grain truck. The water pump that supplies the feed lots. The two windmills on the west range.”

“Yeah, and missing horses on two different occasions,” Laramie added with disgust. “Damn it, Russ, at times every ranch runs through a rash of problems. I keep trying to tell myself that’s what is happening around here.”

“I don’t think you believe that any more than I do,” Russ said.

Rising from the chair, he wandered restlessly around the plush office. “I know one thing—it makes me look as worthless as hell.”

“That’s crazy. You’re not causing these problems. Besides, you’re like the salt of the earth around here. You don’t need to prove yourself to anybody and especially not the Cantrells.”

No. The Cantrell family had always entrusted Laramie with things they regarded important. They believed in him and his ability to deal with matters and problems in a strong, decisive way. But it wasn’t the Cantrells’ opinion of him that he was worried about. It was Leyla’s.

Laramie didn’t know why he wanted to impress the young cook. Sure, he found her attractive, but he’d not gone sappy over the woman. She was a temporary fixture on the Chaparral. He couldn’t let himself get sappy, he quickly reminded himself.

The door connecting the inner barn to the office suddenly opened and Laramie looked over his shoulder to see Russ’s wife entering the room.

Even though her midsection was rounded with child, the woman was still continuing to work with an energy that amazed Laramie. Seeing both Laurel and Maura pregnant and working often had him wondering about his own mother. Diego had told him that Peggy had worked as a waitress in an Alto café right up until the time she’d given birth to him. That couldn’t have been easy and Laramie had often wished he could find the woman. Not to judge her for leaving him behind, but to thank her for not terminating her pregnancy and to ask her why she’d never returned for him.

“Junebug is awake and standing,” she told the two men. “She’s putting weight on that ankle. But she’s so full of painkillers right now she probably doesn’t know it’s sore.”

“And for the next few days we don’t want her to feel that soreness,” Russ told her, then motioned to Laramie. “Let’s go see if she can make it back to her stall okay.”

* * *

A little more than an hour later, Leyla was getting ready for bed when she heard Laramie walking through the hallway toward the staircase.

Telling herself she needed to make sure he wasn’t hungry, she jerked on her robe and hurried out of her suite of rooms to intercept him.

“Laramie?” she called just as he was about to disappear through a doorway several feet down from hers.

Upon hearing her voice, he paused, then walked slowly back to where she stood by her door.

“Hello, Leyla.”

If she’d thought he looked weary that first evening she’d met him, he looked downright exhausted now. Lines of fatigue marred his face, and the front of his shirt and one of his sleeves appeared to be smeared with dried blood.

Feeling extremely foolish, she said, “You’re very tired. I shouldn’t have bothered you.”

He stepped closer. “You’re not bothering me. Is anything wrong?”

“No. I—” She paused as she resisted the urge to clutch the edges of her robe together at her throat. “I was worried. Sassy said your horses had gone missing. Did you find them?”

The tension around his mouth eased slightly. “Found them right about sundown. The mare was injured and the vet just now finished suturing her ankle.”

That would explain the blood on his shirt, Leyla thought. Compassion for him and the animal caused her to groan out loud. “Oh, no. Is she going to be okay?”

“Let’s put it this way—she’ll live. But her injury is like a beautiful woman such as yourself getting an ugly scar on her face that will never go away.”

“I’m so sorry.”

A lopsided grin touched his lips. “I think you really mean that.”

Slightly offended by his remark, she said, “I do. I love animals.”

His gaze swept curiously over her face before it fell to the watch on his wrist. “I realize it’s pretty late and I gave you the day off. But since you’re still up, do you have anything in the refrigerator I can eat?”

The fact that he was asking so nicely instead of ordering her like an employee made her feel special and before she could stop herself she was smiling at him.

“There are plenty of leftovers,” she told him. “I’ll heat them for you.”

He said, “Great. Just let me get a quick shower and I’ll be right down.”

Leyla watched him stride away, then turned and hurried back into her apartment. After checking to make sure Dillon was still sound asleep, Leyla glanced down at her blue satin robe. She should probably change back into her jeans and shirt, but she’d already put them into the dirty laundry bin and she didn’t want to take the time to dig out more clothes when the robe adequately covered her.

Besides, none of that mattered. All that mattered was that Laramie was home and safe. That had her heart smiling and her bare feet skimming over the tiles as she raced to the kitchen.

You’ve lost it, Leyla. You’re letting yourself get all besotted by a man again.

The little warning voice in her head caused her footsteps to slow but only for a moment. She wasn’t becoming infatuated with Laramie Jones, she fiercely argued with herself. She was simply letting herself feel like a woman again. And that was hardly a crime of passion.

Chapter Five

B
y the time Laramie reappeared, she had everything heated and ready for him to eat.

As he sank into a chair at the end of the kitchen table, he said, “This is very nice of you, Leyla.” Reaching for a plate of pork chops, he glanced around the kitchen. “Is Dillon already asleep for the night?”

“Yes. He goes to bed at eight-thirty or nine and won’t wake until about six.”

“I can’t remember ever getting that much sleep.” He forked the meat on his plate, then reached for a bowl of Spanish rice. “I had planned to take Dillon down to the barns today to see the horses and cows. But the ordeal with the missing horses came up.”

That meant Leyla would’ve had to accompany him and Dillon, she thought. And spending more time with Laramie might not be a smart thing to do. But she couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed that she’d missed the chance.

She sank into a chair to his right. “Dillon would have liked that,” she told him. “But we had a busy day anyway. We went to town with Sassy. She wanted to go shopping. I mostly looked.”

“That doesn’t surprise me—that you mostly looked,” he added knowingly.

Leyla glanced down at herself as a blush worked its way to her face. Her clothes were plain, many of them coming from local thrift shops. And the only good piece of jewelry she possessed was a pair of silver earrings that her mother had given her for her sixteenth birthday. The little dangling doves only left Leyla’s ears when she went to bed at night.